This invention relates to a water production unit that uses engine exhaust heat or electrical power to provide the motive energy to recover water from ambient air.
There are many environments in which an engine is used where water is desired but not readily available. For example, during military campaigns water is typically brought to remote or arid regions where water is not readily available. Water must be brought along a supply line to troops, where military vehicles are often present, which is dangerous and costly. One by-product of a combustion engine is waste heat in the form of high temperature exhaust. This waste heat can be used to drive a process to recover water from ambient air. Electrical power can be used when the engine is off and waste heat is not available.
A water recovery system has been proposed to recover water from ambient air using a vehicle's exhaust heat. The propose system is suggested as an adjunct for stationary and vehicle, turbine or internal combustion engine power plants. However, any system employed in a military or similar vehicle must be highly efficient to justify the system. Further, it is desirable to have the ability to collect water under a broad range of environmental conditions, even in the arid conditions of a desert.